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| 1. EDEN HAZARD - AM | 8.9 |
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Minutes played90
Touches94
Passes66/76
Shots0/1
Take-ons9/11
Fouls drawn3
Guess who's back? Eden Hazard's back! Tell a friend. Hopefully it's not a Torresian 'HE'S BACK!' but something far more real and lasting and true.
Where in the world has this Hazard been hiding since last season? I suppose it doesn't really matter. What matters is, can he keep this going and put together a run of performances that not only will at least match what we had gotten used to from him last year, but also puts Chelsea on his back and carries us back into relevance.
That may not be the most ideal way to operate, but maybe the supporting cast will step up as well in his wake. (And they will have to if Hazard continues to not want to take shots on.)
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| 2. JOHN TERRY - DC | 7.7 |
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Minutes played90
Touches53
Passes33/42
Clearances3/5
Blocks+INTs4
Don't recall Terry having to do much of anything — maybe a couple clearances? — but he made a most crucial block and he also did an outrageous Zola-esque skill on a corner that is certainly worth a few ratings points all by itself.
It could very well be that in a couple months from now, after a stellar run of results from the team, we look back on Terry's block late in the first half against Norwich City, with the game still scoreless, as a crucial turning point. That's not a guaranteed outcome; it didn't truly happen for Courtois's penalty save against West Brom earlier, but maybe this time, it will be different.
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| 3. NEMANJA MATIĆ - MC | 7.7 |
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Minutes played90
Touches95
Passes74/82
Shots0/2
Take-ons3/3
Tackles6
It's a real throwback, this top three, with Chelsea's best player, Chelsea's legendary captain (who rolled back the years last season quite spectacularly), and Chelsea's most irreplaceable player of the last couple years all making the podium.
If these three can perform to this level the rest of the way — Chelsea dominated the match so thoroughly that Asmir Begovic touched the ball a grand total of 16 times — we might just not get relegated!
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STARTERS:
Begović (7.0), Kenedy (7.4), Terry (7.7), Zouma (7.6), Ivanović (6.4), Matić (7.7), Fàbregas (7.6), Pedro (6.5), Hazard (8.9), Willian (7.4), Costa (6.8)
SUBS:
Oscar (6.1), Ramires (5.9), Azpilicueta (6.0)
OVERALL:
